Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a disease that causes loss of vision due to deterioration of delicate photo-receptors in a specialized region of the retina known as the macula. The macula is a 1.5 mm region of the retina that has the greatest density of cone photo-receptors in the eye. Surgical correction of AMD involves reconnecting the macula with the healthy choroid by means of a 3-port par plana vitrectomy. The damaged tissue under the macula is replaced with a healthy graft of retinal pigment epithelium (RPE), Bruch's membrane, and partial or full thickness choroid. Unless the graft is supported during cutting and translocation, the tissue can fold on itself and thus damage the delicate cells of the RPE.
Current technology for performing macular translocation is inadequate.